Marcus Stoinis knows that in order to get something, you have to be ready to lose something.
Indeed, life is a trade-off and all depends on the choices you make.
Well, recently, Marcus Stoinis gave up a six-figure payday for the sake of his personal safety and international cricketing future.
Stoinis pulled out of this year’s lucrative Caribbean Premier League. His franchise was Barbados Tridents.
It was good money for 19 days of work but Stoinis was worried about the Coronavirus and decided to put health over lucre.
However, there was another factor that tilted his decision.
The lure of the IPL – surely, the biggest cricket festival on earth.
Focussed on IPL and Australia
Stoinis knows his limitations as a cricketer.
He realises that with his set of skills, he can’t hope to make it to the Aussie test team.
Where he has a much bigger chance is the limited overs format – the 50 overs and T 20.
Stoinis is very intent on making it back to the Australian team.
Stoinis was dropped after the World Cup and knows that a good showing in a global event will boost his chances of a return to the Baggy green.
Of course, playing in the IPL is also more lucrative than the CPL.
The star all-rounder has a $940,000 contract with Delhi in the IPL.
Had he got infected in the Caribbean, he could have kissed this money goodbye!
Of course, some people might look at his actions as ‘selfish’ or ‘mercenary’, it’s a personal decision that needs to be respected.
Man on a mission
His focus and determination to capitalise on the big chances was on full display against the Kings XI yesterday.
Earlier in the day, Delhi put on 157/8 after Stoinis (53 off 21 balls) played a blinder to save them from a batting collapse.
At one point, after 17 overs, the Capitals were 100 for 6 and looking at a total in the region of 130.
They ended up with 158, thanks to one of the most spells of big-hitting the IPL has ever seen.
The bowling wasn’t great – Chris Jordan and Cottrell, who looked rusty, didn’t vary their pace all that much.
The pace wasn’t great and neither was the length – there were too many short-pitched balls or over-pitched balls that are easily put away.
Stoinis made hay while the sun shone.
His play revealed that he had really thought about how to top about his innings.
For example, he took guard on off stump to get closer to the line if the bowlers went wide.
The Capitals punished all the loose balls on offer and the last three overs brought the Capitals 13, 14, and 30 runs respectively.
Stoinis wasn’t done yet.
Just when Kings XI Punjab thought they have won the match, they were pegged back by Stoinis. After KXIP leveled the score in the third ball of the final over, the Australian all-rounder picked two wickets in consecutive balls to push the match into Super Over.
Delhi Capitals then went on to win the contest in Super Over.
KXIP suddenly choked and lost KL Rahul and Nicholas Pooran inside three balls.
They scored just 2 runs which must be a world record for the lowest number of runs in a super over!
Fast bowlers rock it
There was ample grass on the pitch and Shami made full use of it.
Shami loves grass as much as the cows and goats do and he showed why!
Using his upright seam, he swung and cut the ball in both directions and was pretty much unplayable. It was a formality before he dismissed both, Prithvi Shaw and Shimron Hetmyer.
Shami finished with an outstanding 3 wickets for 15.
For the Super Over, the Capitals chose Kagiso Rabada.
A wise decision as he bounced out KL Rahul who looked like a deer caught in front of headlights and cleaned up Pooran too!
That pretty much settled it.
Delhi Capitals 157 for 8 (Stoinis 53, Iyer 39, Pant 31, Shami 3-15, Cottrell 2-24) beat Kings XI Punjab 157 for 8 (Agarwal 89, Ashwin 2-2, Rabada 2-28, Stoinis 2-29) via the Super Over
